31 July 2004	Saturday	13 Jamadi-us-Saani 1425

LAHORE, July 30: The controversy that followed the appointment of Pir Syed Masood Ahmad Chishti as the Punjab Bar Council executive committee chairperson now seems to have developed into a conflict with elected members of the lawyers' statutory bodies also involved.

A clear division in the already-polarized legal fraternity was evident on Friday when two appellate committees of the Pakistan Bar Council took conflicting decisions - for and against the appointment of Mr Chishti.

In the first instance, a group of PBC members opposed to Mr Chishti's appointment was able to procure an order from the Pakistan Bar Council's appellate committee No 1 restraining Mr Chishti from functioning as PBC executive committee chairperson.

A few hours later, a pro-Chishti group managed to get another order from the Pakistan Bar Council appellate committee No 2, allowing Mr Chishti to continue in office. The appellate committee No 1, headed by Muhammad Kazim Khan, restrained Pir Syed Masood Chishti from functioning as the executive committee chairperson of the Punjab Bar Council.

It also stayed the operation of the notification issued on July 21 by PBC vice-chairperson Chaudhry Tanvirur Rehman Randhawa appointing Mr Chishti to the office. The committee served notice on the PBC's vice-chairperson and the chairperson executive, asking them to explain their position On Sept 9.

The appeal to the Pakistan Bar Council's appellate committee was fled by advocate Mian Zafar Iqbal Kalanauri who represented the group of lawyers which is opposed to Mr Chishti's appointment through a notification.

In the other event, a reference was sent by the PBC vice-chairperson to appellate committee No 2, headed by Chaudhry Muhammad Ashraf Wahla, which passed the order that Mr Chishti would continue in office till the decision of the reference.

This committee passed the order that the vice-chairperson was authorized by the PBC house to issue the notification to appoint Pir Masood Chishti as the executive committee chairperson.

The decision of the vice-chairperson, according to this committee, was supported by the advocate-general who, as ex-officio chairperson of the Punjab Bar Council, declined to undo the notification issued on July 21.

The AG on Thursday returned a representation against the appointment of Mr Chishti on the plea that the Pakistan Bar Council alone was empowered to undo the act because the vice-chairperson was authorized to exercise powers on his behalf.